Help! My goldfish is sick! His tail is blackish & he's hugging the surface.He went belly up for a just moment.

Question

My comet goldfish, whom I have had for 4 1/2 years is sick & I'm afraid I might lose him.I know he has internal parasites,which I'm treating him for,& have been for awhile.
His tail & fins are turning blackish,& have been for a couple of weeks.
He started to act unenergetic about 4 weeks ago,but then recovered for a few days about two weeks ago.He started acting this way right after I did a complete water change.For most fish I would say thats the cause,but Alfred,my fish,has had complete water changes many times without any trouble. In fact, I think he enjoys it.
After a few weeks sitting on the bottom all day,he started floating vertically on the top and sucking air.I aerated his water for him,& right after he went belly up.He flipped back over after a few seconds & went verticle again.Afterwards he acted a bit more perky for half a minute than returned to the usual verticle.
He also lost a few scales,I don't know if this is related.
Any ideas what's the matter with him?A Cure?

I also believe he's getting a little bit big for his 10 gallon tank. He's all by himself, but he's 4 inches long, 8 if you count tail.

Oh, and I have him on StressCoat, and StressZyme. The first I've always used, the second I thought might be a good thing since he's been sick. The first is just a slime-coat mimic, while the later levels the nitrate and ammonia in the water.

I do know for a fact that he has finrot, but that's not what this is. He's had it before, that's why I got the StressCoat, which cured him and revealed the underlying cause, internal parasites.
He has finrot in ADITION to this, finrot does not have colouring as far as I know.

Oh, and none of my local vets would know. I live in the heart of farm country. They know cows and horses, cats and dogs. There wouldn't be a fish vet locally either :( I wish there was.

And yes, he does have a bubbler. He loves it, and he hung out by it more when he first got sick, but now he's not.

Oh, and he isn't eating much if at all.

Answer 1

Does the fish have a filter in addition to the bubbler? It sounds like he's had several problems, and for the age, he should be in a larger tank.

The immediate problem appears to be related to the water quality, and perhaps a swim bladder disorder. When you do a water change, you shouldn't remove all the water - only about 25% of the volume of the tank. If you cleaned the gravel, etc. There are bacteria on it that convert the ammonia (toxic) that Alfred produces into nitrite (also toxic), then nitrate (non-toxic in moderate amounts). If you clean too well, you lose the bacteria and the toxic stuff build up, and the water can get cloudy. Unless you can test the water and see that the ammonia and nitrite are less than 0.5 and the nitrate is less than 30, I would suggest a 25% water change asap, and another tomorrow. The blacked fins are a sign of ammonia exposure, but should go away in about 2 weeks of better water conditions.

As far as floating vertically, I'm assuming this is head down? That sounds like a swim bladder problem if so. If you can, try getting him to eat a cooked pea with the skin removed. There may be air or gasses inside his body from gulping too much air at the surface or eating too much (or bad) food. The pea is fiber that will help push anything through his system. If you don't see improvement after two days of clean water and a few peas, I'd consider that the cause is bacterial and treat using an antibacterial medication (Furanase).

What makes you believe he's got internal parasites and what are you using for that? Some medications for parasites are fine for external use, but have absorption problems when used for treating internal parasites. Have you just been using something that's added to the water, or something his food is soaked in before feeding? Are you sure he was receiving the correct dose? Overmedication can cause black patches to appear on a fish, so this could also be what caused the black edges on his fins.

Answer 2

Are you changing 50% of the water each week? The tank is too small to keep clean enough for that sized fish. Also replace his food. It likely is rancid. Nitrates may also be sky high. Solution is to change the water in mass quantities until perameters are ideal. Nitrate should be less than 20ppm.
Please take my advice to get a good anti-parasite and anti-biotic food for the fish, adding chemicals right now could very well send the fish over the edge. Go visit
www.goldfishconnection.com
order Metro-meds (medicated food for internal parasites)
Order Medi-Gold (anti-biotic food)
and Jump Start.
Feed the Metro meds first then the Medi-Gold then the jump start. Don't open it until you are ready to feed, you don't want it going bad before you go through the process. These are excellent meds for your fish and they will not disturb the biological system whatsoever, unlike medicines that go directly into the tank water. You must avoid those at all costs every one of them will kill the bio-system. The medicated foods work and have saved my fish before in the past. Its a good idea to feed them this in the spring to help them fight off the springtime crud. If your goldfish get sick it will usually be in the spring. Rick Hess is the owner of Goldfish Connection and if you ask him to rush your order he will free of charge. While you wait for it to arrive do some water changes and heat your little tank to 83 degrees (make sure you have the bubblers going full blast) will help your fish.
Blackened fins are a sign that part of the fish is healing. What's concerning is the behavior and missing scales. Anytime a goldfish stops booking around the tank all day is cause for alarm. Healthy fish simply don't rest much when the lights are on. I hope you take my advice I think the fish can be saved but you are going to have to really baby it. Start saving your money for a larger tank.

Answer 3

Does the tank you have him on have bubbles and do you put a special medicine that you're suppose to put in every time you clean the bowl if not maybe the tank is too small and cant Breath.

Well Good Luck!

Answer 4

There isn't much left to do. Usually the whole black fins is fin rot. They have medicines that you can use for that, but if he's starting to go belly up and becoming lethargic, it is most likely coming time to his end. Has his fins started to droop? Once the top fins starts to sag, it ultimately predicts his end.

Answer 5

Whoa! He's too big for his tank!!!!
Get him a bigger one!!!

He's got no room to move, and they have to keep moving to stay healthy!

Go now before it's too late, once their sick, Goldfish are VERY hard to keep alive.

Answer 6

Take him to the fish doctor if he is super important to you. They can be a bit expensive, however sometimes its worth it.

Answer 7

i hate to say it your fishes journey is probabally over . be prepared . and if you think about getting more fish may i suggest a bigger tank . they do need to be able to move . good luck .

Answer 8

I'm sorry, but it sounds like he's at the end of his life. : (

Answer 9

i think he's dying:( call the vet